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Friday, December 12, 2008

Sharp Knife Debacle #3

Check out this story MSCD colleague Christy found and sent along to me:

VIENNA, Austria — An actor's suicide scene became a little too real for comfort when he accidentally stabbed himself in the neck during a performance after a stage prop was replaced with a sharp knife at an Austrian theater.Daniel Hoevels of the Thalia Theater company from Hamburg, Germany, was supposed to be using a knife blunted for use onstage, but the knife had been switched with a sharp one for the show Saturday night.Vienna police said Thursday they were investigating "bodily injury caused by negligence."The theater company said the original prop knife was damaged and that instructions to blunt the replacement had been "carelessly" disregarded. It did not specify who it thought might be responsible.Hoevels received stitches for his injury at a hospital and was back on stage at Vienna's prestigious Burgtheater the next day. He was playing the role of Mortimer in Friedrich Schiller's "Mary Stuart."Hoevels declined to be interviewed about the incident.:sigh: Hey, let's hear your ideas of what the Stage Combat Darwin Awards should be called. I'd like to start reviewing candidates like the above.~Jenn